2025 West Coast Conference Tournament

Last year, Saint Mary’s earned a 69-60 win over Gonzaga in the West Coast Conference tournament finals, snapping a four-year streak of the Zags winning the league. Well, this year, both teams are expected to make the finals again, with Saint Mary’s coming in as the No. 1 seed and Gonzaga right behind them. However, there is more parity than ever in the WCC, as San Francisco and Santa Clara are both rock-solid basketball teams. That said, there’s a lot of intrigue heading into this tournament, which takes place at Orleans Arena in Nevada. Keep reading for a little betting preview, including notes on the tournament favorite, a darkhorse to consider, some players to watch out for and then a pick to win.

How to Watch the West Coast Conference Tournament

When: March 6 – 11

 

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Where: Orleans Arena in Paradise, Nevada

Format: Teams seeded by records within conference; top-four seeds get byes through quarterfinals

Watch: ESPN+, ESPN, ESPN2; Championship Game on ESPN on Mar. 11 at 9:00 p.m. ET

College Basketball Odds | College Basketball Betting Splits | Greg Peterson’s Daily Lines | Steve Makinen’s Power Ratings

West Coast Conference Bracket

West Coast Conference Tournament Seeds, Teams and Odds

  1. Saint Mary’s Gaels (+130)
  2. Gonzaga Bulldogs (-125)
  3. San Francisco Dons (22-1)
  4. Santa Clara Broncos (12-1)
  5. Oregon State Beavers (50-1)
  6. Washington State Cougars (100-1)
  7. Loyola Marymount Lions (250-1)
  8. Portland Pilots (300-1)
  9. Pepperdine Waves (350-1)
  10. Pacific Tigers (350-1)
  11. San Diego Toreros (400-1)

(odds from DraftKings Sportsbook accurate at time of publish)

Favorite To Win West Coast Conference Tournament

Saint Mary’s is the No. 1 seed in the tournament this year, as the Gaels went 27-4 overall and 17-1 in WCC play this year. However, Gonzaga is the betting favorite to win this thing. Mark Few’s team went 0-2 in two meetings with Saint Mary’s this season, but the oddsmakers — and plenty of bettors — feel that the third time would be the charm for the Zags. And a bunch of smart, analytical basketball minds seemingly agree. Gonzaga is the eighth-ranked team in our VSiN Power Ratings this year, and the Zags are our top-ranked West Coast Conference team. KenPom, Bart Torvik and EvanMiya all back that up, putting Gonzaga as their No. 1 team in the conference. The Zags are undoubtedly the most talented group amongst the 11 teams in the WCC, and we know Few is a great coach. But Gonzaga lost four games in the league this year, so teams will believe in themselves against the Zags.

West Coast Conference Tournament Darkhorse

It’s hard to call Santa Clara a darkhorse after a regular season in which the Broncos went 20-11 overall and 12-6 in conference play. Santa Clara also happened to earn a road win over Gonzaga on January 18th. However, the Broncos are the fourth seed in this conference, and I’m not sure I see any of the teams after them having a real shot at winning. So, if you’re looking to ditch Saint Mary’s and Gonzaga in favor of a long shot, this is where to look. As the fourth seed, Santa Clara avoids facing Gonzaga until a potential final, which is significant considering everybody has the Zags as the conference’s most dangerous team. And if you’re taking this play, you’re likely grabbing a 20-1 ticket at FanDuel and hoping to have the opportunity to hedge. And it’s just very hard to rule out the possibility of the Broncos ultimately putting you in a position to do that.

Of course, Santa Clara went 0-2 in two meetings with Saint Mary’s this season, and the Broncos will need to beat the Gaels in the semifinals in order for you to monetize this ticket. But it is very difficult to beat a solid team three times in a row, so that’s working in Santa Clara’s favor. Also, the big difference between these two teams is the defense. KenPom has the Gaels as the nation’s 39th-most efficient offense and 11th-most efficient defense. The Broncos are the 42nd-most efficient offense and the 73rd-most efficient defense. But in a tournament like this, the game will shrink and both teams will be playing their hearts out defensively. So, Santa Clara’s weakness should look a little better, giving the team a shot of winning if it can out-execute Saint Mary’s offensively. And I don’t think it’s crazy to believe in the Broncos doing that with their backcourt.

Players to Watch in West Coast Conference Tournament

As always, Gonzaga has some dudes. Ryan Nembhard, younger brother of Indiana Pacers guard Andrew Nembhard, is a stud. The senior is averaging 10.9 points, 10.0 assists and 1.6 steals per game. There might not be a playmaker like him in the country, as Nembhard is lightning quick and reads the game at an extremely high level. He’s also capable of flipping the switch and turning into a scorer, and he’s a 40.7% 3-point shooter on top of all of that. Just look at what Nembhard did in the final two regular-season games of the season. He had 12 points and 15 dimes against Santa Clara on February 25th, and he followed that up with 16 assists in a 20-point win over San Francisco.

The Zags also have Graham Ike, a dominant low-post big that can also step out and knock down jumpers, along with guards Khalif Battle and Nolan Hickman. Both of those guys can get hot on any given night, giving Gonzaga an electric backcourt. The Bulldogs also happen to have Ben Gregg and Braden Huff to terrorize opposing bigs when Ike isn’t. EvanMiya’s BPR rankings actually say that Huff is the most efficient player in the conference, and he comes off the bench. This team is simply loaded.

For Saint Mary’s, Augustas Marciulionis, Paulius Murauskas and Mitchell Saxen are all awesome. Marciulionis is the offensive engine for this team. He’s averaging 14.4 points and 6.1 assists per game. Marciulionis is a very good decision maker as a lead guard, and he’s also an efficient scorer. Meanwhile, Murauskas and Saxen make up a great frontcourt. Murauskas is averaging 12.8 points and 8.1 rebounds per game, and Saxen is averaging 10.4 points, 8.0 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game. This team just has a really nice balance, and I didn’t even touch on sniper Mikey Lewis. The freshman plays only 16.0 minutes per game, but he’s shooting 41.2% from 3 and can really get hot in a hurry.

Another player that needs some love is San Francisco’s Malik Thomas. The senior is leading the league in scoring this year, averaging 19.1 points per game. He’s a prolific scorer that nobody will want to face this postseason, as he has had six games with 25 or more points this season.

It’s also hard to leave out some of the Santa Clara guys. Christoph Tilly does a lot of good work at the center position, and his ability to hold his own against some of the elite Gonzaga and Saint Mary’s bigs is the reason the Broncos have a chance this week. The team also has some firepower in the backcourt, as Adama-Alpha Bal and Carlos Stewart Jr. can both score the basketball.

Let’s also shine a light on Oregon State forward Michael Rataj. The forward is averaging 17.4 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.6 steals per game this year. He’s good at pretty much everything, and he’s the reason Oregon State is fifth on the odds board. If the Beavers pull off a big upset this week, it’ll likely be because of him. And you just can’t rule out the possibility of that happening. Rataj dropped 29 in a win over Gonzaga back on January 16th.

Betting Pick to Win the West Coast Conference Tournament

As boring as it is to take the tournament favorite, I like Gonzaga to win this thing. I know the fact that the Zags are 0-2 against the Gaels seems bad, but I actually think it’ll help fuel Gonzaga. If the team does end up facing Saint Mary’s in the final, you won’t catch Few’s group sleepwalking and thinking about the NCAA Tournament. He’ll have his guys fired up and ready to get some revenge. It’s also just hard to overlook how strong the team’s statistical profile is. Gonzaga is seventh in the nation in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency rankings, and the team is decent enough defensively. Bart Torvik and KenPom have the Zags as a top-40 defense, and EvanMiya has them as a top-30 group. Regardless, you can expect a stronger effort on that end of the floor in the postseason, especially considering Gonzaga has the size and athleticism to find another gear.

Makinen Power Ratings for West Coast Conference

  • West Coast teams that had a bye in earlier round(s) are on a tremendous 26-5 SU and 19-11-1 ATS (63.3%) run.
  • WCC favorites in the semifinal and championship rounds are on a 21-12 ATS (63.6%) run.
  • The sweet spot for betting favorites in the WCC tourney is in the -6 to -12 line range, 24-3 SU and 21-5-1 ATS (80.8%) in the last 27.
  • West Coast Conference tourney totals of 147 or higher have been explosive lately, going Over the total at a 20-11-1 (64.5%) rate while producing about 155.8 PPG on average.

More Steve Makinen Conference Tournament Betting Trends.

Check out the other previews in our 2025 College Basketball Conference Tournament Betting Guide.

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